Deity Like Me
by PsychoticSymbiotic
Summary: So maybe beating the shit out of Karin and running away from Konoha hadn't been the best idea. But hey, being held captive by the sexy but psychotic leader of the Akatsuki who is completely intent on making you his isn't that bad when you're surrounded by nine incredibly fine men. "Oh my god-!" "Yes, dear?" Save me. \\Akatsuki-Sakura/ \\PeinNagato-Sakura/ Previously called Wind.
1. Chapter 1

There I sat, under the tree, again. Not training or sparring like the other two, because I, Haruno Sakura, the best, strongest medical ninja and inheritor of the inhuman strength, was too weak. The Uchiha had come back only a few months ago, mind you after killing thousands, attempting to kill us, betraying an entire village, and learning god knows what kind of forbidden techniques, and was welcomed back with open arms. He'd brought friends too.

Oh yeah. Three of them. The look on Naruto's face when he found out Sasuke had a new team was priceless. Two of them were over training next to my supposed team. The other sitting next to me sneering on about how I never had a chance with Sasuke. What I wouldn't give to punch the girl in the face. I clenched and unclenched my fists, trying to restrain myself.

"And Sasuke-_kun_ likes girls with curves", she fairly snarled, looking me up and down, "you obviously don't have a chance."

I leisurely stretched the tight fabric of my gloves around my fingers and rolled the sore muscles in my neck. I uncurled my long legs from underneath me and stretched in an attempt to calm myself. The leather of my boots was trapping all of the heat of the day and it made shins slide and sweat uncomfortably within them. It was humid out, almost unbearably so, and I wondered vaguely about the unusual amount of people who had been visiting the hospital due to a sudden lapse in sanity. A curious assortment of people had decided that this summer was the summer to flip their shit and menace innocent bystanders. Perhaps it was the heat. I could certainly begin to feel the blistering sun take its task on my patience. I had never really been known for superb mental stability, at any rate. My blood boiled with pent up rage at everything around me. My eyes ached.

"Besides, he needs someone who will make his clan strong", she eyed my fairy-fucking-princess pink hair with apparent distaste, "do you really think that he would want an Uchiha heir with pink hair?"

She spit out the color as if it had done something to personally offend her and with a flick of her deep red hair over her shoulder she reached out in an attempt to pull on one of the strands.

It is funny how, sometimes, you react without thinking. After years and years of training to hone my senses and skills so that if an enemy were to attack I would be prepared, only to let it all go and move on instinct when the moment actually arrived. I was a generally calm person, given the circumstances I was forced to function under. My first love abandoned me for power and broke all ties with us because he "needed no one" only to return with a new team. My first ever sensei neglected teaching me to the point that I was forced to seek out a new one on my own. And to top it all off, I was always pushed to the background in favor of Naruto and Sasuke, the saviors, the heroes, the survivors, the poor lonely little things.

I usually tried to reign in my temper; I bore it all with a smile and tried to do what I could for my friends. So how, in fact, did I find myself not only on top of Karin, the skin on my knuckles split from her face, but continuing to beat her within an inch of her life?

My head throbbed and it felt like my eyes were being incinerated from the inside out. All the training had stopped. The witty banter that had been passing back and forth between Juugo and Suigetsu had silenced and everyone was standing still. But I didn't care.

It hit me then, straddling the poor excuse for a teammate that Sasuke had chosen over me. I really didn't care. As far as I was concerned, Sasuke could stay here and train all he liked, he could screw as many girls as he wanted and have as many children as his shriveled little heart desired, but he would always be a failure. Naruto could stay here and try and try hopelessly to make something more of himself and it would never happen. And this whole fucking village could just _rot_.

My feet stomped away from the training grounds of their own accord and soon enough I was in my small apartment. I slammed a black bag onto my couch and began packing the necessities. My heart was pounding and it felt like my head was splitting in half. I shoved down the throbbing pain and stalked into the bathroom to grab what I needed: toothbrush, some toothpaste, only the bare minimum. I grabbed a small container of shampoo off the rim of the bathtub and froze. A disheveled version of myself stared back at me in the rectangular cut mirror hanging off the blue tiled wall, the flamboyant pink hair, the up turned button nose, the small splash of freckles that dotted my cheeks. But there staring back at me was a pair of sterling silver ringed eyes surrounding the jeweled jade that I was accustomed to.

It was then I became aware of how agonizing my headache had become. I felt my cheek hit the cool tile floor and the fuzzy black dots that had been lingering in the corners of my eyes took over. A deep chuckle resonated throughout my unconsciousness.


	2. Chapter 2

I awoke to a damp moldy smell that reminded me of camping in a thick forest after a long mission. As my heavy eyelids groggily slid open I could make out the dimly lit walls of a cave. The ground underneath me was soft and covered with an expanse of plush green moss. Somewhere in the distance, water dripped and echoed loudly. Thin strips of white light reflected from a glowing pool set into the rock in front of me and danced across the dripping cave walls surrounding me. I pressed the palms of my hands to my eyes to try and cool the deep burning sensation. It was peaceful here.

My mind reeled at the events that had passed in such a short amount of time. The skin on my knuckles still stung and I couldn't help but let out a long sigh. I managed to roll onto my feet and my joints popped appreciatively. Curiosity got the best of me and I made my way over to the shimmering pool, it was carved out the dark stone of the cave walls and raised as if it were some kind of fountain. The water was clear as day and glowed with a source of light I couldn't see. My fingertips brushed the rippling surface and I was delighted to find it was refreshingly cool and crisp. My reflection looked back at me, sliver and green eyes gazing accusingly. What had happened? And as for a matter of fact, where the hell was I? If ANBU or even Naruto got to me, I was sure to be imprisoned, if only temporarily. The multitude of tests, both psychological and physical, that they were sure to put me through made my head swim. But there seemed to be no one anywhere near me. No chakra signatures pulsed warningly around me and as I closed my eyes I could feel no one within miles from where I stood. Where was I? I remembered storming away from the training grounds, despite Naruto's cries to come back and returning to my apartment. In my rage, I had begun hastily flinging things into my bag and packing what I would need to leave. I had felt Naruto's chakra signature racing after me and I had known that I didn't have much time. But after that, it was all hazy. I couldn't manage to force my mind to bring up the memories of what happened next. I dipped my hands into the water and splashed my face.

A warm breeze sung into the cave and gently tousled my hair, drawing my attention past the pool. If there was wind, there was an exit. The heels of my boots sprung eagerly back against the spongy moss as I made my way toward the dark end of the cave that yawned out in front of me. The walls were damp underneath my fingers and cool drops of water traveled down the walls and tickled my hands. The jagged rocks were a deep dark green and glittered with small crystals dotting randomly throughout them. They continued on high above my head and soon disappeared into the shadows above, but the crystals glittered through the darkness like millions of brilliant twinkling fireflies.

My hands reached out as I descended further into the darkness and felt around the walls, the only thing keeping me from falling was the flickering light of the crystals. Up ahead I could see a warm glowing light. It looked inviting, a brilliant orange and yellow, and I found myself stumbling a little bit faster toward it. The darkness seemed to ebb away as I came closer to the brilliant glow and I began to run. What I stumbled into made me gasp aloud.

It was a vast cavern covered in crystals; stalagmites hung from the ceiling and everything dazzled in a rainbow of colors. Deep blood red crystal columns jutted out from the walls and sunshine yellow and orange formations made up the floor. Beautiful colors danced around and bathed the cavern in the light of a sunset. The rock walls glittered with the firefly lights and everything sparkled in such a manner it took my breath away.

"Beautiful, isn't it?"

There in the center of all the beauty was a man, amongst all the shimmering crystals and twinkling stalagmites, he fit in perfectly. He was casually perched on an intricate throne of glittering red rock; lead up to by stairs made out of the same smoothed blood red crystal. He was nothing short of breathtaking himself. His orange hair stood at odd angles atop his head and bangs fringed his forehead protector. His skin was perfectly clear and smooth with almost a light grey in color; it looked so soft I wanted to touch it. Going down his nose in pairs were six piercings that glinted in the light followed by a pair of snake bites that jutted down in small spikes from his full lower lip. His eyes were like melting silver burning around a deep blue stormy sea and they were fixated on me in such an intense way it made my knees weak. His cloak flowed down his knees, a deep charcoal grey and adorned with the swirling red clouds that struck terror into the hearts of most who were unfortunate enough to behold them. His lips pulled up into a smirk at my stunned expression. He rose off the deep throne and slowly descended the steps toward me, the stalagmites casting splashes of color across his face. His eyes twinkled mischievously.

It was at that moment my wits decided to return to me and I blurted out the first thing that rushed to mind.

"What the hell?"

I wanted to slap my hand to my forehead. Intelligent, Sakura, really. The gorgeous man didn't seem to mind, though. He paused his descent towards me and his lips parted as deep masculine chuckle escaped them. My heart was beating a million beats per minute and I felt the blood rush to my face.

"I suppose introductions are in order, aren't they?" The way he tilted his head to side was almost adorable. In a few long strides he made his over to me placed his fingers underneath my chin and tilted my face up. I suddenly felt a little woozy. The respected and revered kunoichi in me said that I should be on my guard and trying to find my way out of here, while the normal girl in me giggled while a little bit of drool dribbled down her chin.

"My name is Pein, and I'm a god." He seemed to stop and contemplate something for a second and then he returned his eyes to mine. He was so close I could see the dark orange eyelashes lower and dust across his high cheek bones as he gazed at me. "As are you, my little one."

The spell seemed to break then and I realized just who I was talking to, and just how trapped I was. I miraculously found my voice.

"Look, dude." I pulled my chin away and took a few healthy steps back, "I don't know why you decided to drag me into this little cave of yours, but I'm the farthest thing from a god there is. I don't give a damn if you're the leader of the Akatsuki, I suggest you find some mental help and rethink next time you decide to kidnap a kunoichi from the leaf." My temper flared at the fact that he had the gall to look amused and my heart felt like it was going explode from fear and I unconsciously began to charge chakra into my fist.

"Now if you would kindly show me the way out, I'll rethink punching your pretty little face in." I threatened. His lips twitched into a devilish smirk and I decided I didn't like the evil little twinkle he got in his eyes. Before I could react, he grabbed my wrist and yanked me forward. My mind blanked and I felt soft lips press gently against my cheek.

"I'll being seeing you very soon, love." He purred against my skin, his warm breath spilling onto my cheek.

I awoke to the cold tiles of my bathroom floor nicely acquainting themselves with my face. Someone was pounding at my door and I jumped to my feet with a start. There were more chakra signatures quickly jumping over rooftops towards me as well as the one currently trying to kick down my door. I pushed the remnants of _whatever_ the hell that just was and bolted for the window, just managing to grab my bag before I jumped.

-x-

The roads of whatever god forsaken little town I was traveling through were made of dirt and kicked up clouds of dust whenever the smallest wind swept through. And at this particular moment in time, I felt like strangling someone. There was dust in my eyes and they were watering heavily, my throat burned from all the debris and the lack of water I had consumed the past few days, and every single muscle in my body ached. I had traveled at a ridiculous speed to ensure that no one from Konoha caught up with me. Over the past three days I had traveled well over a hundred miles at a speed I'm sure even Naruto would be impressed with. I had survived on the soldier pills I had miraculously remembered to shove in my bag and some unfortunate wildlife I had hunted with kunai in the forest I had traveled through. I had slept under the large trees surrounding Konoha that it was known for and awoke at dawn every morning to start traveling again. Right now I was fairly sure that I was currently in Tani, the hidden village of River Country, and I had about twenty more miles until I crossed the border into Ame, and the small town I was traveling through was one the rest stops built upon one of Tani's infamous hot springs.

I looked down at my vest, it was covered in dirt and my skirt was doing no better. My hair was hideously greasy and I could feel all of the grime on my skin. However, the little money I had was reserved for food and I highly doubted that I could afford any of the hotels that dotted this tiny town, let alone one with a nice, relaxing hot spring. I had only enough money for food for tonight, and then I was out of luck. I could always go back into the forest to hunt for more food, but I had to keep moving if I didn't want to risk being captured by Naruto. Knowing him, he was probably already on his way here and ready to break both my legs if it meant bringing me back. There were no other ninja in this town, and I doubted I could just walk up to someone and find a job. Yeah, I could see that happening. Hi, I'm Sakura, you wouldn't happen to have anyone you need assassinated, would you?

I sighed and walked past a few friendly looking vendors lining the dirt road that served as the entrance of the small village and tried not to look at their stands lined with plump fruits and grilled meats, the scents wafting into the air and making my mouth water. I'd have to figure out a way to get some money, and fast, to avoid sleeping outside tonight.

I looked around at the town in hopes that I would see a little old lady in need of help and willingly to reward a helpful bystander with a hefty sum, but I had no such luck. There were a few bars and hotels lining the dirt path, none of them looking like they were particularly clean or luxurious. A few prostitutes lingered on the corner of the street and they leered at me as I walked past. As if I was here to steal their customers, not that it would be all that hard judging from the amount of makeup they had caked unto their ugly faces and the flab they had hanging on their bodies, but I still had far too much pride to stoop so low. I was a kunoichi, and I had more than enough talent than to offer my body for money. I turned the corner and spied a few more seedy bars and what looked like a market surrounded by more vendors and their delicious food.

I let out another long sigh and pushed my hair back with my hands in frustration. My brows pulled together and I kicked a rock near my foot with a little more force than necessary. Was there something wrong with me? Was I so incredibly unlovable that that stupid Uchiha decided he had to leave the village without me and then come back with someone even weaker than I am, just to show me? I was no Naruto, but I knew that I was at least stronger than that little gremlin. My heart gave a quick squeeze. Was it because I was unattractive? I peered at myself in the glass of the _Mocking Sparrow_, an old decrepit looking bar, and frowned at myself. I had a fair face, nothing too unattractive about it. I was slim, a little lacking in the curves, but I wasn't hideous. I grumbled to myself and kicked another rock grumpily, shoving all of the upsetting thoughts out of my head. Maybe I could find some work or hear some helpful gossip in the bar.

I brushed the layers of dust of my stomach, ruffled my hair a small bit and walked into the dimly lit tavern. It was a mangy looking place with few people in it; those who were inside didn't look my way as I walked across the room in quick strides and sat myself at the bar. There were a few lanterns and candles placed around that brightened up the place, but other than that it was fairly dark. No one here looked rather happy, either. There were two men in seats at the end of the bar, whispering heatedly to each other and occasionally giving suspicious glances around. They spotted me and glared. With a mumble, the taller of the two threw some coins on the table out of his grubby old wallet and made his way out. I had never been one to steal, but beggars can't be choosers so I glanced around to make sure no one was watching and held my breath as I gently slipped the wallet out of his back pocket as he walked by. The man oblivious to what happened and slammed the door on his way out. A small breath of relief wooshed out of my lungs and I smiled politely at the bartender giving me an expectant look.

"May I have a glass of water, please?" The rather large man wiped his hands on his apron and grunted, grabbing a glass and filling it to the brim with some rather murky looking water. I pushed back the thoughts of exactly how much bacteria was in it, tossed my head back, and downed all of it. A few of the patrons were eyeing me in a way that I didn't particularly enjoy as I set the glass down with a _thunk. _The bartender gave me an amused look and offered the pitcher to me; I took it with a small sheepish smile and poured myself another healthy glass.

"Been traveling for a while?" He asked politely, a small amused twinkle in his eyes. I looked up at him in surprise and he gave a friendly smile in return.

I cleared my throat from all the sludge that had been building up. "Yeah, a few days now."

He hummed and started wiping down the counter. "You're awfully young to be traveling on your own." He mused. I managed a smile and nodded, pulling my forehead protector out from under my shirt and discretely flashing it. "Ahhh, I see." He winked and I quickly tucked it back into my shirt.

"Well, little lady, my name is Hayate." He stuffed the rag he had been washing the counters with back into the pocket of his apron and lazily leaned onto the counter with both hands. His chocolate brown hair was in disarray and his blue eyes twinkled, giving him an air of mischief. He was a tall man with a big build, his biceps rippled from underneath the short sleeves of his greasy white shirt. The bell twinkled as the door opened and a grin spread across his tan face.

"Izo! You crazy bastard! When did you get back?" Hayate boomed laughter, his eyes crinkling at the sides and his smile widening. There was a grunt from somewhere behind me and grumpy looking middle aged man plopped down into the seat beside me, sending a suspicious glare my way. "Yesterday. Boss said I did a good job so they gave me a few days off." The entire time he spoke he didn't take his eyes off me and I began to grow a little uncomfortable. Hayate gave another booming laugh and clapped the newcomer on the shoulder. This finally drew the man's attention and he turned to Hayate with his lips slightly turned upward. "You deserve it, man. You've been working pretty damn hard lately. I wonder what's goin' on in that boss of yours' head." The man sitting next to me, Izo, grunted again and accepted the dark brown drink Hayate offered him.

Hayate seemed to remember my presence and turned to me. "Is there anything else I can get you?" I chewed my lip for a second in contemplation. Being the kunoichi that I was, with my bubblegum pink hair and somewhat recognizable features, I was bound to be recognized at some point. I couldn't stay here much longer but I needed a night of rest to restore my energy.

"Is there anywhere you know of that I could pick up a quick job?" I questioned, biting my lip and smiling shyly. Hayate seemed a little surprised but grinned none the less and opened his mouth to talk.

"You know anything about medicine?" It wasn't Hayate who had spoken. I turned to the man next to me and stuttered in surprise. My heart picked up a few paces and the man's eyes pierced into mine. I tried to act normally and cleared my throat again.

"Only a little." The man grunted and went back to his drink. He seemed to hesitate for second and stared into his glass.

"My kid," he paused for a second and lifted his eyes to mine again. "she's got a bad cold. Anything you can to do help that?"

I looked to Hayate unsurely, nervously running a hand through my oddly colored hair, but the bartender was busily cleaning glasses with his back turned to me. Alas, dinner would not buy itself and I was dying to make my way into a hot spring so I put on the most charming smile I could and nodded. Izo drained his glass and mumbled a goodbye to Hayate who waved over his shoulder.

"Let's go then. My house is down the street." He mumbled and slid out of his seat. I followed behind with farewell glance at Hayate.

-x-

Izo's house was small and homey looking; the sun was beginning to set and it bathed the cream walls of the house in a deep orange. Izo dug around in his pocket as we walked up the stepping stones planted in the ground and up to his front door. He stuck the key into the lock with a jab and turned the lock, a grumpy frown creasing his face. The door opened with a jerk and he stepped through first, sending me an expectant look over his shoulder as I shuffled around at the doorstep.

I looked at the sun slowly beginning to set. Normally, around this time Naruto would be chowing down at Ichiraku's with Sasuke at his side, sending him disgusted looks every so often. Kakashi-sensei would be off somewhere unreachable, reading his little orange book and doing whatever it was Kakashi-sensei did on his free time. I gave another longing look at the sun and sighed. My eyes burned again. I begrudgingly stepped through the threshold. Izo was sitting on an old grey couch and gazing out the window, sipping another dark brown drink, seemingly lost in thought.

He turned and looked at me, his dark brown eyes warmer in the light of the setting sun.

"She's upstairs." He motioned toward the wooden stairs with a lazy wave of his hand and turned back around, placing his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands, obviously done with talking to me.

I nodded to myself and made way up the old stairs, each one creaking as I stepped onto it. My hand gripped the railing and I peered up, there were a few doors. Each of them was a plain white, the paint peeling with age, but one had the name _Emily _carved ornately into it. The door was slightly ajar and I could see dim light coming from inside, I gently pushed it open and peeked in. There was a little bed tucked into the corner adorned with fading pink sheets and a white dresser set next to it. A floral design danced across the middle of the walls, much to my amusement painted sakura surrounded by green leaves wound their way around the room. I stepped further in and called out softly, "Emily?"

The bed was neatly made and toys were stacked perfectly in all their right places, everything was collecting a layer of dust. I couldn't help but frown. Something was off here. "Emily?" I tried one more time, biting my lip nervously. All of my senses were on high alert. It seemed as if no one had set foot in here for years, and taken special care to preserve everything in its place.

"Hello, love."

I opened my mouth to scream for Izo, but a hand clamped over my mouth and darkness started to creep into the corners of my vision.

-x-

Well, I hope you guys enjoyed this one! It took me a while and I uploaded this really late at night, so I ended up going back and in and fixing all the typos. Sorry about that. I will be uploading once every two weeks, and I will try as hard as I can to stay on schedule. Please review! If you don't give me feedback I don't know if anyone likes this or not and I'm not sure if I should continue updating or not. Thank you so much for the support, and the next person to review will get a special shout out in the next chapter! Byyeee~


	3. Chapter 3

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair, resisting the urge to get up and stalk around the room like a caged tiger again. I had just received –the _oh so_ pleasant- delight of waking up in an unknown room accompanied by my –_ oh so_ pleasant- captor. The room I was locked inside of looked almost like a hotel room, complete with vague crème walls and worn beige arm chairs. But with closer inspection one would see that each of the windows had a small, white tag- which I assumed was a seal that I was not willing, or stupid enough, to rip off. There was a twin bed dumped into the center of the room that looked less than clean and for a second I fought the urge to stomp my foot and pout like a little girl. Why did all the crazy bastards always go after _me_? I seriously need to consider dyeing my hair a different color, if that was what was attracting all these creeps. Although a little traitorous voice in my mind whispered that it wasn't so bad to wake up in a warm bed after a long few days of traveling, let alone with a () gorgeous man peering down at me with those smoldering steel eyes and full smirking lips of his.

I growled and jerked up from my spot on the edge of the bed to pace again. The man was infuriating, the biggest bastard I'd ever had the displeasure of meeting. When I had awoken in a bed that I most definitely did not previously lay down in to see his smug face standing over me, I had done the first thing any sensible person would have-

flung the nearest blunt object at his face.

As far as blunt objects go, though, I don't think I accomplished much with that empty tea cup. The tall orange haired man ("I told you to call me _Pein_, love." He purred again at some point or another in my frenzy to arm myself.) merely ducked and shot me a look of mild amusement. Thankfully, I was still in the filthy clothes I had been wearing for the past few days, meaning he had at least the smallest shred of decency as not to undress me while I was unconscious. He had just chuckled at the profanity I shrieked at him and merely waited until I was hyperventilating to speak. "Dinner is in two hours. I'll send someone to accompany you." And then with an over dignified flourish of his cloak, he walked out. I, on the other hand, had spent the last forty-five minutes cursing him with every foul word I knew and slamming my fists fruitlessly on the solid cherry oak door.

My brows pulled downwards and I gave a small huff. There was no way I was going to surrender to the Akatsuki, no matter what they wanted. As quickly as my exhausted legs would allow, I stalked over to the bathroom, and tried not to marvel at the shining marble walls and enormous bath. A large oval mirror hung over a swirled marble sink and I glared at myself in its reflection. To put it lightly, I looked disgusting. My hair was matted and greasy, my face was speckled with dirt and mud and shiny with sweat, my lips were chapped and my eyes peered out from underneath all the mess shining and multicolored like brilliant beacons of light. It was hard to get used to, seeing the color of Pein's eyes surrounding mine. It was like he was taking over me one ring of silver at a time. I sighed and ran my hand through my tangled hair again. Pein had just left a little over an hour ago, and surely as the leader of the Akatsuki he was a busy man, so he wouldn't be back anytime soon.

I peered longingly at the bath and bit my lip. It was black and white swirled marble big enough to comfortably fit at least four. To the left and right of it were lined with shelves built into the wall and tucked into each one were hundreds of little glass bottles. They were all corked with a little stopper and adorned with a delicately written little piece of paper as a label. The sunlight came through a large circular opening in the ceiling and caught all the different colors of the bottles. I stepped forward and took in a long breath. Lavender, peach, strawberry, green tea, cinnamon, shea butter- they all smelled amazing. A towel on the edge of the bath caught my eye, pristinely white and soft. On top lay a small piece of paper scrawled with a neat slanted script.

_You are only a prisoner if you choose to be._

I growled and crumpled the paper. I was a prisoner with or without a bath, so screw it. With a paranoid glance around, I turned on one of the spouts and stripped off my clothes. Steam began to rise and the bath filled quickly. Another sigh left my lips as I lowered myself into the hot water and all my sore muscles slowly began to relax. The generous amount of lavender I reached for and dumped into the water began to take its calming effect. Slowly, my mind started to finally process the hordes of information that had been thrown at me.


	4. Chapter 4

I sighed as I rose from the now lukewarm bath, feeling cleaner than I had been in days. My skin smelled like lavender and was silky smooth to the touch, making me want to keep running my delicate fingers over it. The warm fluffy towel hugging my curves smelled distinctly masculine, but I tried as hard as I could not to think about who had used it before, and whether it had been washed. The tatami mats and cherry wood flooring were cold against my feet as I padded over to the large closet off to the side and slid the thin paper door open. Inside was a walk-in closet with only it's skeleton left, there were a few empty coat hangers and a box or two on the floor. I sighed again as I ran a hand through my hair, the wet knots giving way to my fingers.

A pang of homesickness shot straight into my heart and I closed my eyes, resting the back of my head against the door frame with a thump. All my things, all my friends, my work, Naruto-they were all gone. Was Naruto even looking for me? I doubted he could handle losing me too, after Sasuke. He'd been alone for most of his life, and now both of us had abandoned him. Was he all sunshine and rainbows through the pain, as always? My lips curved upwards as I thought about him, he was most likely already on his way here, Kiba right beside him sniffing out my trail as well as the best trackers in Konoha, as he tore through anything that got in his way. He'd bring down all seven of the nations to get to me. I chuckled to myself, imagining to look on Tsunade's face when he came barging in, demanding that a retrieval team be assembled this instant, dattebayo! He'd make a great Hokage someday, I thought fondly.

From behind me, someone loudly cleared their throat and shifted their weight, patiently waiting for me to finish reminiscing. I nearly shot out of my skin as the cold grip of fear seized my stomach, and clutched the towel closer to my body. Slowly, I turned around to face the person behind me. Hoshigaki Kisame stood in all his glory, an amused grin on his face that showed off his pointed teeth well. He looked relaxed, oddly enough, with his arms crossed over his broad chest and one hip popped out to the side. He was dressed in normal clothes, dark pants with a white sash around the waist and a tight fitting dark grey shirt; not that the absence of the cloak made him any less recognizable. The dark blue hair stood at odds ends atop his head and a simple black head band kept it from falling in his eyes. It was odd, seeing him dressed comfortably. It was like seeing Kakashi without his mask. The shark man's deep black eyes surveyed my next to naked form and his grin widened. I swallowed thickly and wrapped the suddenly thin fabric around myself tighter. He simply raised an eyebrow at me and waved his hand lavishly in the air as he bowed.

My eyes slid beside the shark man where another familiar face stood; Hidan. He looked annoyed at having to be here, his pants and sash the same as Kisame's and low on his hips. He however was shirtless; his pale torso toned and delicious. The usual silver chain hung from his neck and the shining Jashin symbol tapped his navel as it swung with the movement as he put his hands on his hips and made an irritated sound in the back of his throat. His eyes never stayed on me for more than a few seconds, but when they did they would hover hungrily on parts I would rather they didn't.

"Dinner is served, M'lady." Kisame mused in a deep gravelly voice, placing a dinged and well-worn tray on the foot of the bed. Was that a spot of blood on it? He grinned lazily at her and sat down next to it, as if he was here to have a normal conversation. Hidan shot me a glare and hovered near the door, waiting for me to make a move he deemed threatening and chop me to little bits, most likely. Kisame scanned me before his eyes drifted the empty closet, seeming to understand the situation. Suddenly, he grabbed the hem of his shirt and pulled it off, as if it were the most casual thing in the world to do, and threw it at me. He chuckled good naturedly at my mute horror and shrugged nonchalantly.

"Would you rather walk around in that?" He chortled and crossed one leg over the other. "Oh, um no, thanks." I managed lamely, turning back to look at the closet, and then shooting a nervous look at the two Akatsuki. I couldn't try to kill them and escape in a towel, right? I reasoned to myself as I stepped into the walk-in closet, giving them another apprehensive look. Kisame grinned lazily at me and slapped his large hands over his eyes, grinning from underneath them. Hidan just snorted in disgust and stared me down when I glanced at him. A mutter escaped my lips as I slid the door shut and quickly shimmied out of my towel, nervous eyes darting from the task at hand to the door, waiting for either of them to barge in and rape me at any second. But sure enough, they stayed in their same places as I slid the blue haired man's shirt over her head. It smelled nice, I thought startled, like expensive cologne and sake. Quickly, I shook that incredibly confusing thought from my head and nervously tugged at the bottom. It was soft and swallowed my entire body like a dress, considering how large he was compared to me. The door creaked as it slid open and there he sat, in the same place he had been with his hands still over his eyes.

I opened my mouth to speak, but a loud growling sound decided to make rumble out of my stomach. I shuffled awkwardly and felt my face heat up, despite myself. Kisame grinned at me again, and pulled a chair from a table nearby, scooting into it and then patting his previous spot. "Eat up, Sweetcheeks, leader said we gotta make sure you eat every bite."

"What, why?" I didn't know why I felt compelled to argue, but it slipped my mouth before I could think better of it. Kisame just sort of gave me a weird look and Hidan mutter something along the lines of "ungrateful heathen" under his breath. I huffed softly and edged toward Kisame, sitting as far away from him as I could while still actually being on the bed, and hungrily started to dig into the food. It was nothing too extravagant, just some grilled chicken and what looked like grilled potatoes. Suddenly, I wondered if they had a chef or if they made their own food. After the first bite, I couldn't take trying to act demure any longer and started to inhale everything on my plate. I hadn't realized I had been so hungry. After a few long moments, I started to self-consciously slow my bites, my eyes drifting up to the two men in front of me with amused looks on their faces.

"Try not to fucking choke on it." Hidan sniggered. I was pretty sure my entire face turned red and I forced myself to start slowly taking tiny bites. It was uncomfortable with the two men watching me like hawks, I felt like some sort of test subject. I couldn't really bring myself to care too much though, the starving hunger in my stomach felt like it was going to gnaw its way out of my torso and demand more food itself. Kisame was grinning at me knowingly and after a particularly large swallow, I found the courage to speak again.

"Did you make this?" I asked curiously. There was no way in hell that the giant half man half fish in front of me had any sort of culinary talent. I was struck with the image of him dancing around boiling pots and pans in a frilly pink apron, singing merrily along to Katy Perry as he stirred some soup. The oversized oaf in front of me boomed laughter and shook his head. "No, one of the other members did. He's about as girly as it gets around here." His grin slanted as he watched me finish off my food. I must have been hallucinating that affectionate amusement in her eyes. "Well, I suppose now that you're here, you're the closest thing to girly."

It was odd to think that I was sitting there, having a casual conversation with two Akatsuki and eating the food they made as if we were the best of chumps.

"I am not girly." I said, a little bit of an offended tone in my voice. Hidan snorted from his place leaning on the table, his arms over his bare chest. "And I'm the fuckin' fairy god mother of wonderland." Both Kisame and I took a moment to give the Jashinist an odd look and wonder about his mental stability. The blue skinned Akatsuki sighed as he stood up, rubbing the back of his head as he regarded her, deciding to not get into the long and tiresome discussion asking Hidan is he has taken his medication today would most likely resort in.

"Come on then, Sweetcheeks, Leader wanted to see ya." Kisame said as he held out his hand.

The office of the orange haired bastard who had decided to ruin my life and abduct me, effectively stealing me away from any chance of living a peaceful life on the road, possibly figuring out a way to talk to Naruto without getting hunted down by ANBU, and being happy and finding someone to love and having little pink haired children-

his office was nothing like I had expected. My imagination had conjured up a dark yawning cavern with a single desk sitting atop of high rise of rock, and there he would sit, in all his glory. The beautiful orange haired man would boom across the empty darkness to me, stern and commanding. I was greeted with no such showmanship.

Kisame knocked twice on the solid oak door and opened it without waiting for some sort of ominous voice to call out "come in" and walked casually in with me in tow. The small office was warmly lit by two lamps, a medium sized dark wood desk sat in between them, messy with papers. The desk was pushed almost all the way to the back of the tiny office with just enough space to shimmy around it and behind it rested a chair that looked a thousand years old and as if it would creek with every movement. But it was the occupant of the chair that my eyes were immediately drawn to. Sitting in the desk chair hunched over a pile of papers and maps was Pein, his hand curled in his orange colored hair and a look of deep concentration on his face. Adorning the bridge of his nose was a pair of rectangular reading glasses, his piercings poking out from underneath them. I felt her mouth go dry and my entire body freeze. He looked somehow both delectable and adorable at the same time with those glasses on, his hair messy and his lips parted. Somewhere deep inside of me, the lustful version of myself did backflips.

Finally, he looked up from his paperwork and set his smoldering steel eyes on me. His lips twitched upward at the sight and he straightened, nodding at Hidan and Kisame to leave. The shark man sent me one last grin as he turned to leave, and they disappeared out of the only exit.

I took a deep breath.

"You stupid prick! How dare you abduct me! Oh my God,-"

"Yes, dear?"

"-you're fucked in the head!"

A frustrated screech escaped my lips and I childishly stomped my foot, glaring at him and placing my hands on my hips. Pein just simply looked at me, his eyes sliding down my body and then back up, as he pulled out a medium sized box from behind his desk and held it out to me.

"This is for you, Sakura."

I frowned at the familiarity in his tone and hesitantly reached out for the box. A cheerful pink bow hugged the plain brown cardboard, and in the slanted script I had come to know as Pein's was my name. The ribbon was soft against my fingertips as I pulled it free and opened the box, my eyes narrowing further at the sight of what was in it. A clean, new cloak sat staring innocently back up at me, its blood red clouds swirling their way lazily across the fabric. Nestled into the thick dark grey material was a gleaming ring, one I knew adorned the finger of every member of the Akatsuki for eternity. For the second time since I had been taken, twice in the same day in fact, I felt like throwing something at the smug bastard in front of me. My lips curled into a sneer as I turned my gaze on him, rage bubbling in my stomach anew.

"Fuck you." I spit angrily.

Pein seemed a little disappointed, his hands curling in his lap as he leaned back and frowned at me silently. Kisame lumbered in and stood at attention behind me, his hands casually shoved in the pockets of his trousers.

"You will change your mind eventually." Pein drawled, steel grey searing in his intense stare. Without another word, a blue hand clamped around my bicep and I was dragged out of the office. The walk down the dark and musty hallways were short, and I found myself being led back down the clean, homey hallways I had just come from. My mind frantically worked for something I could use to stall, to not go back in that stupid room. Hidan had appeared next to me and shot a suspicious glare my way as my eyes flew around the hallways. But I found that I didn't need to grasp at straws for an idea, because I was led down a different set of turns and twists and farther away from that dreaded room. Lights began to dot the long hallways, becoming brighter and more fluorescent with each step- they hummed with electricity and occasionally a moth fluttered over to one and zapped, fluttering lifelessly to the floor.

Soon enough, I was pushed into a room that I recognized immediately. Steel, sterile tables lay side by side in the middle of the room, clean white counters surround the entire perimeter, and cabinets hung low on the walls- a dark wood that had been meticulously cleaned of every piece of dust possible. Jars full of medical supplies were aligned neatly on the white tiles and the only thing in the entirety of the space that wasn't spotless was the disheveled man perched on one of the examination tables, a look of pure hatred on his handsome face.

"Dammit, Tobi, hm! You're such a little dipshit!" He shrieked while he cradled one of his hands, a long steak knife driven right through the center. His tan visage was etched with annoyance, and every few moments he would flip the long blonde hair out of his face, a tick or habit I assumed. He was wearing what seemed to be the standard pants and sash, but as my eyes traveled up I saw that Hidan wasn't the only shirtless member in my vicinity, the young man's abs contracted as he continued to fling obscenities and nearby objects at the simpering man in front of him. His muscular arms bare and ripping as he clenched his bloodied shirt around his bleeding hand, and he gestured wildly as he ranted.

"Who the bloody fuck runs around with a steak knife, yeah? You little fucking psycho! I'm going to shove one of my bombs up your ass!" Another man, fully dressed in an Akatsuki cloak and mask, who I assumed was Tobi, whimpered again and bowed low begging for forgiveness in a childishly pleading voice. I raised a brow at the scene and turned to Kisame who seemed to be enjoying watching the minor clusterfuck, but shrugged lazily as he turned his gaze to me. "I never said making your dinner was a painless process." He mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. Hidan guffawed from somewhere to my left and I tried as hard as I could to force down the growing smile. Nutjobs.

Kisame's voice caught the attention of the two arguing members and they both straightened, their eyes trained on me. Eternity began as I waited for someone to say something, anything, but no one moved and the silence hung heavily in the bleach scented air. Azure eyes stared pointedly at me, devoid of anything but the milkiness of deep thought, and for a moment he seemed lost. But then rage registered on his face and his mouth twisted into a thin line, all directed at me. The masked member began cheerfully introducing himself, but I was enraptured by the blonde's eyes, filled with such deep set hatred and pain, but just a little bit of longing speckled in gold flecks. He never moved his gaze from me, but more and more he seemed to become infuriated. Kisame seemed to sense the growing tenseness in the air and shuffled, awkwardly clearing his throat. He opened his mouth to explain something, but a warm baritone beat him to it, cut with anger and clipped with ice, but not the anger he had inflicted on Tobi moments ago, no, this was much darker.

"What the fuck is she doing here, hmm?" He growled, shivers shot up my spine. Kisame stumbled for an answer but he was too late, the blonde Akatsuki had stalked across the room and wrapped his bloodied hands around my throat, kitchen knife ripped out and thrown on the table. A choked noise of surprise left my throat and instinct told me to immediately begin to struggle, clawing at his wrists and pushing frantically on his chest, but it was to no avail. My chakra was long gone and as muscular as I was, I was no match for someone a hundred pounds heavier than me, and quite a bit taller. My eyes shot over to Kisame for help, and he seemed to register what was going on at last. Quickly, he ripped the young Akatsuki off of me and threw him across the room.

"Deidara!" He barked in his deep, scratchy voice. "What do you think you're doing? Leader said hands off!"

The bomber's eyes were on me again, burning with hatred and rage that I didn't know if I deserved. His teeth grit and bared at me, his long locks of hair had fallen out of their usual tidy captivity and splayed across his broad shoulders. He was gorgeous, but he also despised me.

"You killed him, hmm! You killed Sasori!" He snarled at me, and it was then I realized- this was the partner of the first man I ever killed. The one that was probably alone every night in silence, longing for a friend that had died by my hands I had killed the only person this man had ever cared about, and happily. Eagerly, even. He had been an enemy to me, to my ideals, to my home, and a threat to the things I cared about the most- so I had murdered him. It was a shinobi's job. But for a moment, I wondered. Who had Sasori left behind?

-xxxx-

It never made sense to me when people portrayed Deidara as the friendliest person to Sakura, she killed his partner and what was probably his closest and only friend in the Akatsuki. Because of her, he is stuck with the permanent annoyance that is Tobi. If anything, he has the most reason to hate her out of anyone. And thus, another chapter of Wind. Review, twats! :c Pwease?


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